Tuesday Oct 22 - 25

Rail was the means of transporting us to our next destination - Cinque Terre!  As the name suggests, Cinque Terre is a string of five fishing villages perched high on the Italian Riviera in the region of Liguria - no cars!  Truly, I don’t know how to convey the beauty and uniqueness of this area.  We had arranged for an apartment in Corniglia, one of the more quiet of villages. We were told the apt was not too far from the train, so we met our hostess, Barbra, and began the trek.  The operative word for Corniglia, is “ steps, steps, steps”!…she wasn’t kidding!

A brick staircase led up to the building, then two more flights to the apartment.   The apt is right on the ocean, with views to die for.  The town however, is at the top of the mountain.  Thank God Barbra had the AC on... it was hot!  I wasn’t expecting the unseasonal weather.  After taking us through the house she told us how to get to the town... the boys decided to shop for staples joined by Marie, I opted to stay home and cool down with Antoinette ( she didn’t need cooling down!).

Town is reached by a series of switchback staircases...OMG!!  Not a good idea to look up!

The guys actually negotiated them sometimes more than once in a day!  

Like most of Italy, the dining hour begins at 7.  So we ventured up the stairs to find a restaurant. That first night we ate at Posada, since this was at the first landing after the major climb.  It was delicious!  I had the troife pasta with pesto...a typical dish of the area.  Prawns, lasagna, fresh fish, bolognese, all scrumptious!  The wine was excellent and dessert was pretty good too.  

While we were enjoying our dinner “al fresca” the bus showed up.  I thought, great - we can take it back down. But no - it stops running at 9:30.  So we began our difficult downward journey!  Thank goodness for flashlights on iPhones!

Once back home we sat on our terrace and planned our next day which was to be one of discovery.  I wanted to go into town before it got too hot, knowing I’d have to get my cardio in, via the steps.  So Ed, Marie and I set out.  We ambled thru the alleys and byways taking in the rustic charm and flavor of the town.  We found a restaurant ( le Pirun) that was recommended to us. So we made reservations for that night.  Then we ventured down (again) to relax.  

Dinner...up the stairs (again) to a fabulous dinner. Our waitress was adorable and tried to speak English opposite us trying to speak Italian.  The menu was not unlike that of the night before and also delicious!  The boys were amazed...Lenny asked for bourbon/ scotch, laughed then shrugged and hoped for the best...then the owner says “ marky, marky”...we all said yes, yes!  He brings an unopened bottle to the table.  The boys drank as much as they wanted and got charged $15 !!  They were very happy!

As we left the restaurant, it began to rain.  I was nervous about the descent but it was fine.  Again, we sat on the terrace, discussing events for the next day.  We were to have an 8 hour exploration with a guide, visiting the other towns.  As it happened, the day dawned grey, windy and stormy. Lightening lit the sky and I thought it best to cancel the tour, safety being paramount.  We were able to reschedule for the next day...fingers crossed for better weather!

The Cinque Terre is noted for its beauty.  Over the centuries people have carefully built terraces to cultivate grapes and olives on the rugged, steep landscape right up to the cliffs that overlook the Mediterranean.

The area is recognized by the UNESCO Mankind’s Heritage and is a national park.  Miles of hiking trails cover the area, and link each town to each other.   The towns are:  Monterosso, Vernazza, Corniglia, Manarola and Riomaggiore.  We had the pleasure of visiting all of them with our guide, Veronica. We met her in Manarola and she gave us an overview of the area. Their claim to fame is an electrified Nativity scene placed on the mountain sides.

We walked briefly on the trail, along the cliff overlooking the harbor and fishing boats, which is shared with the swimming rocks. Veronica pointed out the monorail system for transporting equipment, harvest and whatever else, up and down the mountain.  Manarola also boasts la Via D’ Amore. We walked to the highest point we could, but the trail is not maintained, so access to Riomaggiore must be made inland, or by train.

We were met by a driver, Max, who took us to Porto Venire...Port of Venus.  It was explained to us that tourism is pretty new here, but it was evident that the locals caught on pretty quick!  We enjoyed browsing the shops and making our way to the edge of town. Here is Byron’s cave, and St Peter’s church...and steps!  

Bob suggested we buy some local pesto (mmmm...), pasta and wine to cook at home. Stopping at a kiosk, the woman allowed samples. She asked Bob to step into the shop for a wine taste.  As we were taking pix of it, someone teased him about a new wife. This woman started calling him “ my love”...it was very funny as she said her goodbyes to her love!  Dinner by the way was fantastic!

On our way to Riomaggiore we stopped at what looked like a dive...”Sole 180” - down a few steps and were in Paradiso!  What a view!  While having a drink we drank in the beauty of our surroundings!

Riomaggiore seemed to be more popular and crowded. I can’t imagine what these areas are like during the high season. We limited our time there, said goodbye to a Veronica and boarded the train for Monterosso.  What is interesting, though these towns are all seaside, there are no beaches per say...until Monterosso! 

This town was hopping. It reminded me a little of Barcelona and San Sebastián ( Spain).  We were in search of a restaurant recommended by our guide.  It was very hot, and I was cranky ( yes, I’ll admit it), and not happy by how far we seemed to be walking.   Lenny had the directions on his phone and when I saw a tunnel coming up, I vehemently stated I wasn’t going through that tunnel!  I was happy to stop anywhere rather than go through the tunnel!  My feet were burning, I was hot and sweaty and my companions thought it was pretty funny!  I was HANGRY!  We reached the restaurant, had a cooling drink, light lunch and all was right with the (beautiful) world!

Knowing we had an early train to get on Saturday (5 am), we called it an early night, anxious to continue the adventure!